Hearing your thoughts
by Secret-Ninja1
Summary: Kenma has the ability to read people's minds and Kuroo can turn into any creature he wants. With their powers, they decide to enroll in Nekoma, a school for the supernaturally gifted in Tokyo. A request from Veiled Curiosity.


Kuroo didn't bother knocking on the door to Kenma's room, marching in with a grin like he owned the place and slinging his duffel bag onto his shoulder. He looked around the expanse of the room to find that Kenma had cleaned off his desk and he sighed looking at the empty area. "You packed more than your games, right? You took your whole collection."

Kenma was seated on the floor, in the middle of folding a shirt into his suitcase. "There's still plenty of room for my clothes. I put my games at the bottom so they wouldn't get damaged." His legs were crossed and he turned to look at his friend, the gesture enough to beckon Kuroo over to help.

Packing didn't take very long with two people and Kenma gave a quick good bye to his parents before they headed off to the nearest bus station. The walk was quiet, neither of them saying a word as they boarded the bus and took their seats near the back. It wasn't as crowded at it usually was, but Kuroo only assumed it was because they had gotten on early in the morning.

"Are you excited about Nekoma?"

"Not really." Kenma gave a quiet reply, the boy already digging out his PSP from his bag for the trip ahead.

Kuroo only smiled and scooted closer, leaning in to see the game he was playing before he looked out the window. "I think we'll both like it. It'll be a nice change compared to home, so don't be so worried about it."

"I'm not." Kenma kept his gaze at his video game, his thumb pressing at the buttons before he lowered the device onto his lap. "At least I won't be the only freak there."

"Kenma," the black haired teen ruffled his hair, ignoring the other's objection to the action. "You're not a freak; you're special. You can do things that other people wish they could do and I don't judge you for it at all."

The boy remained quiet after that, choosing to play his game rather than argue. He didn't like talking about his ability and the topic brought up more than a few unpleasant thoughts. He was scared to tell people about it and kept it in the dark when meeting others because he didn't want to be judged and avoided like a disease.

Kenma had knowledge of his ability at a young age and often stayed away from people because of it. It started when his mother offered him a hug before he left for school. The contact had triggered Kenma's power and he blurted out exactly what she was thinking. It was something simple, like about the water bill, but the words startled his mother and he was gently guided out of the house without a reason for her behavior.

A few years went by and Kenma had finally worked up the courage to tell his parents the truth, but the reaction was as expected. They would have been skeptical of his explanation had they not seen his ability first-hand before and the discovery led them to reject any sort of physical contact between them and their son. Hugging was rare from then on for fear that Kenma would be able to hear their thoughts just by a simple touch.

Growing up void of affection made the boy self-conscious and far more anxious about what others thought of him, and he refused to be close to anyone in case his friends would hate him for what he was, too. He was alone in group projects and by himself on the playground until one day he was hit on the head by a stray volleyball.

Things would have been even more difficult for Kenma had he not met Kuroo from the accident. Ever since, he would visit him by the swingset and attempt to talk, but Kenma kept to himself for the most part. He listened to how Kuroo's day went and would offer a nod every now and then to alert the other boy that he was listening. It didn't take very long for Kuroo to wedge himself into his life after Kenma whispered about his power to read minds from physical contact. He was reluctant to tell, but there was something about his new friend that made him easy to trust.

Kuroo, surprisingly, didn't shun the younger boy for his gift and he even told him about his ability that he kept as a secret from his own parents. Kuroo could shapeshift into almost anything at his own will, but his power was limited to animals only. Cats were the easiest form to change into, according to him.

They bonded over their unique talents and Kenma found himself being invited to Kuroo's house almost every weekend after they learned that they were actually neighbors. They would play in his room and Kuroo would often ask if Kenma knew what he was thinking, claiming that with more practice, he would be able to control his mind reading. It never worked, Kenma finding that his ability would only show up at random no matter what they did.

Now they were in high school together and Kuroo had revealed his shapeshifting powers to his parents one night at the dinner table. They were shocked, but Kenma was happy to know that neither one had treated him any differently from before, and accepted his ability with open arms. It was Kuroo's father that had suggested Nekoma; a school in Tokyo for those like Kenma and Kuroo who would be taught how to hone their skills and control them. The tuition was free and there were no objections with the idea, so the boys started packing their bags and preparing for their new life at the prestigious academy.

The sudden bump in the road made Kenma fumble with his game, the unnatural blond gripping the sides a little firmer to prevent dropping the device. Kuroo had caught the slip up and chuckled, nudging him with his shoulder. "That's what you get for day dreaming, Kenma."

They passed a few light pushes to each other until they settled into simply leaning against one another before Kenma brought his feet up and turned off his game to save the battery. They still had another twenty minutes to kill while they waited to be dropped off, but Kenma decided to pass the time by looking out the window and watching the buildings and people they drove by.

As soon as their stop came, Kenma was followed by Kuroo as they exited the bus, making their way to the extrance of Nekoma. The campus was large and three buildings were next to one another with signs classifying each. They were told to report to building A so they could receive their schedules and arrive at their dorm for a day of rest.

Kuroo led the way, walking down the path towards the building before entering with a grin. A woman was behind a desk, typing away at her computer before she looked up at them and turned away from her work. "Can I help you?"

"We're new students: Kuroo Tetsurou and Kozume Kenma. We were told-"

"Here are your schedules. Your classes start at eight tomorrow morning, don't be late." She handed them two slips of paper, Kuroo handing Kenma his while he looked at his own. They compared their classes before the woman handed them two keys, explaining that they were needed to open their dorm room. "You both are going to be staying on the second floor, room twenty-one."

Kanma barely had time to take the keys before she ushered them out of the office and pointed them towards the dorm building. "I can't believe we lucked out on that. I guess their dorms room rules are western based, then." Kuroo checked his schedule once more, smiling. "Too bad we only have two classes together, though."

Kenma shrugged, nudging the door to the building open with his shoulder before they found the elevator. The building was modern enough, but the corners of the walls showed signs of how old the school really was. Kenma wasn't sure how he would handle walking up and down a flight of stairs every day with books and whatnot to carry. He was thankful for the elevator, at least.

"Whoa." Kuroo unlocked their dorm when they arrived, whistling at the space inside, "Talk about roomy. This almost looks like a hotel room to me." The dorm was bigger than his room and could easily fit the two beds that were inside, the area complete with a mini fridge, a stove, television, a balcony outside, and a bathroom.

Kenma dropped his things by his newly claimed bed, sitting down and looking around the room. "I hope we don't have any noisy neighbors. The walls seem a bit thin to me." He leaned back on the bed and sighed, looking up at Kenma who had followed his lead and set his bag on the ground.

"Classes start tomorrow, so at least we'll have time to relax until then. We should unpack, but sleeping here seems like a better idea, don't you think?" He laid down on the perfectly made sheets and rolled to his side, eyeing Kenma with another grin. "Aren't you excited about seeing our new classmates tomorrow?"

"No." Kenma was already pulling his belongings out of his suitcase, taking his games out first and putting them into the nightstand that was between their two beds and deciding to hang up his clothes in the closet that was near the television. "But I'm relieved that we're not completely separated here. I don't know how to handle new settings."

Kuroo looked at him quietly as he busied himself with his clothes before he stood up and embraced him from behind, stopping him from his chore. He didn't do it often, but Kenma had learned to just accept the contact as it was and let Kuroo have his way instead of pointlessly arguing with him to let go. "What am I thinking?"

Kenma slumped and dropped his hands, ignoring his shirt for a moment. "I can't tell right now." Instead of the whine he was expecting, he only felt his hair being ruffled before he felt Kuroo's mouth near his ear.

They were interrupted by a sudden knocking on their door, Kuroo sending Kenma a perplexed look before venturing towards the entrance. He looked out of the peep hole before opening the door, seeing an elderly man dressed in a suit there to greet them. He had seen him before on the Nekoma website, the man titled as the Headmaster of the school.

The man gave him a wave and a smile before introducing himself. "Welcome. My name is Yasufumi Nekomata."


End file.
